Mar 11 2012
Exclusive by Mike Merritt
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A FORMER trainee priest yesterday slated Britain?s most senior Roman Catholic for his vitriolic opposition to gay marriage.
Kevin Crowe ? who lives with his partner, a former Anglican priest ? said Cardinal Keith O?Brien?s comments were hateful, homophobic and wrong.
The cardinal, the leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, said legalising gay marriage would ?shame the United Kingdom in the eyes of the world?.
He said the proposals were ?madness? and ?grotesque? and compared them to the reintroduction of slavery.
But Kevin and partner Simon Long ? the first gay couple to have a civil partnership in the Highlands ? are appalled by the outburst.
Kevin, 62, of Durness, Sutherland, said: ?I don?t see any contradiction in being gay and Christian.
?I lost my faith for a while and only got it back after I accepted my sexuality. Christ made us in his image ? gay and straight.
?We will use the new law to marry ? whatever Cardinal O?Brien thinks or says. My sexuality is a gift from God.?
Simon, 71, says he always knew he was gay but fought against it, even marrying and fathering three children, though the marriage ended after 17 years.
He said: ?As a gay priest, it was a case of ?do as I say? rather than ?do as I do?. I thought I was sinful and I should get it out of my system, which I did by marrying.
?The marriage did not work because I could not be the person my wife wanted me to be.?
Simon, who has now converted to Catholicism, added: ?I think what Cardinal O?Brien said is outrageous.
?There should be married priests ? gay or straight.?
The cardinal sparked a storm during a radio interview last Sunday when he claimed that countries which legalise gay marriage are ?shaming themselves? by going against ?natural law?.
He also claimed same sex unions were the ?thin end of the wedge? and would lead to the ?further degeneration of society into immorality?.
But Kevin hit back, saying: ?It?s a pity our church leaders did not put half as much effort into stopping child abuse as they do in condemning loving, stable and consensual adult relationships.
?Keith O?Brien may be a cardinal, but his outrageous and homophobic comments do not represent the views of all Catholics.
?His words are hurtful to all the gay people who regularly attend mass, many of whom are in long-term, loving and stable relationships.
?His comparing gay marriage with legalising slavery was particularly appalling and should be condemned by all as inhumane and un-Christian.
?As a gay couple, we have rarely encountered any homophobia in our closely-knit community.
?Cardinal O?Brien could learn a lot from a visit here.?
Simon added: ?I know as a Catholic I am breaking the rules but, to be true to myself and my Christian commitment, I have to be honest.
?I don?t see any contradiction between Christian belief and Christian commitment and being gay. I don?t see the problem.
?The ground is shifting ? you can?t keep a lid on the safety valve forever.?
Kevin revealed that before their civil partnership in 2005, a Catholic priest from another parish wrote to the couple telling them of his disapproval.
He said: ?It did hurt, but all I can say is that we have had overwhelming support from fellow Catholics.?
Article source: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2012/03/11/gay-ex-priest-condemns-cardinal-keith-o-brien-s-outburst-on-same-sex-marriage-86908-23784445/
Tags: gay, glbt, lesbian, lgbt
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